Man ticketed after gas leak, told police he was drinking

Crews look over the Cumberland Farms in Hudson Falls a day after a pipe ruptured and spilled over 1,000 gallons of fuel.

Police have ticketed a Ganservoort man they said backed into a gas pump Tuesday night in Hudson Falls that caused 1,200 gallons of fuel to spill into a nearby sewage drain. The spill forced hundreds of residents to evacuate and lead to explosions that sent manholes soaring into the dark sky.

Hudson Falls Police Chief Randy Diamond said Gary Vadnais, 51, admitted to drinking before he hit the pump at a Cumberland Farms on Route 4 with his 2010 Dodge Challenger, but told police he was not drunk.

Vadnais was charged with leaving the scene of a property damage accident, a violation, and fourth-degree endangering the public health or environment, a misdemeanor.

Police could not charge him with driving while intoxicated because they had no evidence of intoxication and no way of collecting any.”He did cooperate to a limited extent,” Diamond said. “He said he was there but doesn’t remember hitting the gas pumps.”

At Vadnais’ home Wednesday night, Diamond said the new-looking Challenger had a dent in the spot where surveillance video had shown it colliding with the gas pump.

The video at the Cumberland Farms gas station and store transactions at the time led police to Vadnais, Diamond said. Vadnais had not purchased gas, but picked up beer at the gas station.

Here’s my story from today’s paper on the chaotic scene in Fort Edward after the fuel ignited near the town line, sparking underground explosions that blasted up through over a dozen manholes.